Chapter 26- Failed Rescue and Exhaustion

Hope was sitting next to Jack the next morning as he watched the waves come in, morosely. "Jack! There's someone out there! You gotta… The current!" Charlie came running and pointing to the ocean.

"What?" Jack asked, standing up.

"There's someone there! Look!" Charlie shouted.

"Help!" They heard a woman scream

"I woke up, and she's... I don't swim. I don't swim," Charlie said as Jack pulled off his shirt and jumped into the ocean.

"Dad, it's too late! She's too far out!" Hope screamed belatedly as he dove and pulled up someone who was not the woman as she floated away, still screaming.

The someone Jack saved appeared to be Boone as Jack brought him to shore and Kate and Charlie helped him out of the water. "Dad!" Hope yelled as Jack went back out into the ocean.

"There's someone still out there," Jack pointed and swam to the woman, to no success.\

After Jack had come back and dried off, he went walking down the beach. Kate, Hope, and Ben-Ben joined him.

"Hey. What did they say? Who was she?" Jack asked.

"Jack, maybe you should-" Kate started to say.

"Who was she?" jack asked firmly.

"Dad, her name was Joanna. She wasn't supposed to even be on the plane. She was scuba diving off the Barrier Reef and got an ear infection, and so the doctors grounded her for two days. She bumped her flight. That's how she ended up with us," Ben-Ben said.

"She was just swimming this morning. Got caught in the riptide. We've been here six days. I never talked to her. Never said a word to her," Jack said, sounding completely gutted.

"Dad, don't," Hope said, touching his arm gently.

"There are 47 of us and I never said a single word," Jack said.

"You tried," Kate said.

"No, I didn't. Hope has made more of an effort because she cares about everyone, even the people who don't deserve her grace. I thought maybe I could... I thought I could bring him back and still have the time. I was there in the water. I didn't try. I decided not to go after her," Jack said, a dazed look crossing his face.

"Jack? What is it?" Kate asked, a concerned look on her face.

"Did you see that?" Jack asked.

"What?" Kate asked.

"Standing there in the water, there was a man. You didn't see that? Hope? Benjamin?" Jack asked, pointing.

"Jack, when was the last time you slept?" Kate asked.

"I need to put this with the rest of the gear," Jack said, walking away.

"I think you're right, Kate. Dad needs to sleep. Come on, Ben-Ben, Let's go find mangoes," Hope said as the walked to the edge of the jungle where Hope had discovered mangoes the day before.

"Hope, do you think Dad will be okay?" Ben heard his son ask his sister as they gathered fruit.

"I'm pretty sure of it. He's probably tired and the heat's a terrible factor and I know he hasn't eaten since Mr. Locke brought the boar. He needs to sleep. Like he said, we've been here six days. He's probably slept a total of 24 hours," Hope said, picking up a piece of fruit.

"What about you? You don't seem to sleep much," Benjamin asked.

"I can handle it, Dummy. And the fact that I've been sneaking naps between chores," Hope said, wiping her sweaty forehead with the back of her hand.

"Oh, so that's Hope Linus Shepard's deep dark secret. After cooking a boar, you take a nap?" Benjamin asked with a wry grin.

"Not always. I go to that pool over there and read. I decided to start a series by a man called Gilbert Morris. He wrote a forty book series called "The House of Winslow" that starts in the time of the Pilgrims and the Mayflower. Sawyer's reading too. I saw him with a romance novel if you can believe that," Hope said with a snort.

"Romance novel? Is this the same Sawyer who shot a polar bear and accused Sayid of crashing our plane?" Ben-Ben asked, raising his eyebrows.

"I know. Aliens must have kidnaped Sawyer and replaced him with a clone," Hope giggled; a nice sound to her father's ears.

"Or you and me watch and read too much science fiction like Dad says," Benjamin said.

"Yeah, that too. But I think Dad is more happy that I'm reading "The Honorable Imposter" over "Spock's World," Hope said with a grin.

"That's the Gilbert Morris book?" Benjamin asked.

"Yep and to be followed by "The Captive Bride" which goes into the Salem Witch Trials. Which, by the way, I thought was stupid. Probably 99 % of those people weren't witches. They were falsely accused and the society was superstitious to say the least and people were forced to accuse them," Hope said with a snort.

"I see. Can I read "Honorable" when you're done?" Benjamin asked.

"Sure, little brother. You starting to like history now?" Hope said, clapping Benjamin's shoulder.

"Well, living with you, why not? I can't always ignore your history talk," Benjamin said.

"That's true. And you might like Gilbert Winslow. He carries a sword. I remember that you liked "Romeo and Juliet" for the swords, dagger, and poison," Hope said dryly.

"True. Why do you think we both took up fencing in gym class? Of course it wasn't so fun having to spar with you and the guard falling off and I cut your arm," Benjamin said.

"I know, but it wasn't your fault. You didn't mean to hurt me and send me to the hospital so I could get 20 stitches," Hope said.

"Yeah, Dad went thermal when he saw the blood and meat coming out of your arm. I thought he was gonna kill me until he realized it wasn't entirely my fault," Benjamin said.

'So, that's what you two were saying when I was half-asleep from the drugs," Hope said.

"Yeah. More or less. But Dad's probably right when he says that we watch and read too much science fiction," Benjamin said.

"Oh, please. You read and watch it more than I do. Who was it who watched a "Lord of the Rings" and "Star Wars" marathon in one weekend earlier this year?" Hope asked, rolling her eyes.

"That'd be me, but you joined me since Dad was working late at the hospital. You didn't even cook those nights as we chowed down on pizza, popcorn, and Chinese takeout," Benjamin said.

"That's true. I don't always like to cook. Even I deserve a break sometimes," Hope said, standing up.

"I don't blame you. Maybe I won't learn how to cook. I'll just let you do it and when I get married my wife will do it," Benjamin said, a response that earned him a punch in the arm from his sister.

"Benjamin Linus Shepard, you are such a pig!" Hope exclaimed as they walked away out of earshot.

"They seem to be okay, Ben," Richard said from his spot next to Diane.

"Yeah, I was actually enjoying hearing them tease each other. I always learn something different about them," Ben said, blinking away moisture in his eyes as he looked in the direction his children had gone.